Black Cardamom (Ilaichi)

Black cardamom is used for hearty meat stews and similar dishes. Although the flavor differs from the smaller green cardamom, black cardamom is sometimes used by large-scale commercial bakers because of its low cost -  not the case anymore!

Black cardamom is often erroneously described as an inferior substitute for green cardamom by those unfamiliar with the spice. It is just not as well suited for the sweet/hot dishes that typically include cardamom and that are more commonly prepared outside the plant's native range.

The spice adds very intense aroma when used in Black Tea or Green Tea.

In China, the pods are used for jin-jin braised meat dishes, particularly in the cuisine of the central-western province of Sichuan. The pods are often used in Vietnam, where they are called thảo quả and used as an ingredient in the broth for the noodle soup called phở.

The largest producer of the black cardamom is Nepal, followed by India and Bhutan.

Also known as Black cardamom, hill cardamom, Bengal cardamom, greater cardamom,  Indian cardamom, Nepal cardamom,  winged cardamom,  big cardamon, or brown cardamom, is a perennial herbaceous plant in the family Zingiberaceae. Its seed pods have a strong, camphor-like flavour, with a smoky character derived from the method of drying. In Hindi it is called बड़ी इलाइची (baḍī ilāichī).